Some 120 prisoners are set to be released from Jashore Central Jail under a special arrangement in a bid to prevent the spread of coronavirus among its inmates.
 
Jail sources said the government releases some prisoners every year under special consideration.
 
A list of the prisoners who are supposed to be released this time was sent to the higher authorities in Dhaka following the coronavirus outbreak.
 
Of them, 75 were awarded life imprisonment and they have already served 20 years.

Jailer Tuhin Kanti said the jail authorities recommended the names of 120 prison inmates and they will be released after scrutiny.

As the number of Covid-19 cases is on a gradual rise in the country, the local administration has imposed restrictions on the movement of vehicles throughout the district of Khulna.

Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Helal Hossain announced the restrictions on Wednesday night in an effort to prevent the spread of coronavirus and it will remain in force until further notice.
 
No vehicle will be allowed to enter or leave the district during this period, he said.

During the lockdown, shops and kitchen markets will remain open from 7am until 7pm.

Hospitals, clinics, medicine shops, banks, financial institutions and emergency services will remain out of the purview of the restrictions.

Strict action will be taken against if anyone violates the restrictions, the DC said.

On April 6, the Khulna Metropolitan Police restricted the movement of people and vehicles in the city.

Holy Shab-e-Barat, the night of fortune and forgiveness, is set to be observed in the country tonight (Thursday night).

This time, Muslim devotees will observe the night with religious fervour staying at home following coronavirus restrictions.  

Devotees will offer special prayers, recite from the Holy Quran, hold milad, zikr and other religious rituals seeking divine blessings for the well being of mankind.

They will pass the whole night offering prayers.

However, Islamic Foundation has urged the people to offer prayers from home during Shab-e-Barat amid the coronavirus outbreak.

It has also called for not visiting graveyards and shrines on the occasion to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Bangladesh on Wednesday confirmed 54 new cases and three deaths from coronavirus. The country has so far recorded 218 cases and 20 deaths.

Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka ranked fourth worst in the Air Quality Index (AQI) on Thursday morning.
 
The city had a score of 160 at 09:00am, indicating that the air quality was ‘unhealthy’.
 
A numerical value between 151 and 200 indicates that everyone may begin to experience health effects. Members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects.
 
Thailand’s Chiang Mai, Vietnam’s Hanoi and Pakistan’s Lahore occupied the first three spots respectively with scores of 206, 174 and 168 respectively.
 
Scores between 201 and 300 is classified as ‘very unhealthy’. If the score is between 301 and 500, then it is classified as ‘hazardous’.
 
The AQI, an index for reporting daily air quality, tells people how clean or polluted the air of a certain city is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for them.
 
Dhaka, one of the most densely populated cities in the world, has been grappling with air pollution for a long time. The air quality generally worsens during summer and shows signs of improvement in monsoon when the dust settles.
 

A readymade garment worker and a banker are among three people who have tested positive for coronavirus in Chattogram, taking the number of confirmed cases in the port city to five.

The RMG worker works at a factory on Sagarika Road while the banker from Sitakunda was posted in Narayanganj. The third patient, a woman, is a resident of Halishahar.

They are aged between 40 and 50 years.

Also read:Bangladesh’s coronavirus cases rise; 3 more dead, 54 newly infected

Detection of new cases has prompted the local administration to put eight houses and three shops under lockdown, Dr Hasan Shahriar, Chattogram divisional director of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), said Wednesday night.

He said they collected 60 samples for test on Wednesday and three of them turned out to be positive.

The administration locked down two houses in Halishahar and Pahartali and six more in Sitakunda around midnight to prevent further transmission of the virus.